4

This year we again have representatives from both the
USA National Institute of Health (NIH) and Centres for
Disease Control (CDC) attending our Colloquium and
Conference - endorsing our view of international
collaboration as a critical means to an end.
We can also see some of the spin-offs that have
occurred due to our Colloquium taking place - either
research projects, collaboration in planning projects or
in other events taking place.
Both the Colloquium and
Conference are high
quality, forward-looking
events that serve to
improve knowledge of
this disease and
generate and improve
international collaboration into ME.
As always the charity takes on the task of producing a
high-quality DVD of the conference with all of the
presentations included. This serves as a historical record
and is an educational tool for doctors and clinicians -
demonstrating the seriousness of this disease. For 2017,
our conference DVD reached even more countries and
allowed us to inform a wider audience.
Yet how do we speed up research and move the
direction away from the flawed approach to ME
research that has been the strategy of establishment
organisations that have not responded to the needs of
patients?
The strategy that Invest in ME Research has created is
to develop a Centre of Excellence for ME based on highquality
biomedical research and international
collaboration.
There are now four PhD students performing
biomedical research into ME at the Norwich Research
Park, where the hub for the UK Centre of Excellence for
ME is proposed. The charity continues to fund research
at UCL also by supporting the remainder of another PhD
studentship there.
The charity is doing more than most to provide a sound
foundation for research into ME and spends more,
proportionately, of its income on biomedical research
and associated activities than any other UK charity.
The Invest in ME Research strategy of bringing in
researchers from other fields to help and improve
biomedical research into ME is working. Our
conferences bring together patients, researchers,
clinicians and healthcare staff and allow knowledge and
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www.investinme.org
experiences to be shared – and IIMEC13 and BRMEC8
will see us entering our thirteenth year in doing this.
Our BRMEC8 is again a two-day event with biomedical
researchers invited from around the world. This year
will be the biggest yet with almost 100 top biomedical
researchers participating from over a dozen countries.
The IIMEC13 Conference allows researchers, clinicians
and patient/ groups/patients and carers to mix with
each other, discuss
together and network
with unique
opportunities – all
enabling a greater
understanding of this
disease.
In order to bring the best education and research to
London each year we welcome all support for these
events as there are significant costs involved in
achieving this. We are therefore extremely grateful to
our friends and supporters who have helped us via
online donations. We also wish to thank our sponsors
for IIMEC13.
The Irish ME Trust
A word of thanks to the
Irish ME Trust who, yet
again, will be sponsoring
one of the speakers to
the conference. IMET
have been a constant
friend and supporter of
IiMER, and of ME
patients. They have been
a leading member in the
European ME Alliance.
The Irish ME Trust has sponsored a speaker at all of our
conferences and we would like to thank them for their
continued support.
Norges ME Forening
Norway's ME Association (Norges ME Forening) is
sponsoring the IIMEC13 conference.
Norges ME Forening has been a long-standing
supporter of IiMER we are very grateful for this kind
donation. Thank you NMEF.
Invest in ME research (Charity Nr. 1153730)